Tenstorrent CEO Jim Keller Denies Qualcomm Acquisition Talks Despite $10B Reports

What Happened

Jim Keller, CEO of Canadian AI chip startup Tenstorrent, denied at a Tokyo media event on June 30, 2026 that the company is in acquisition talks with Qualcomm for $8–10B. Reports of the deal first appeared in The Information in mid-June 2026.\n\n## Context and Impact
Tenstorrent makes AI processors on the open RISC-V standard that outperform traditional GPUs for certain workloads. Qualcomm is attempting to diversify beyond smartphones into data centers with its own AI accelerators.\n\n## Details

• Tenstorrent founded 2016, led by Jim Keller (ex-Apple, ex-Tesla)
• CEO denial makes near-term deal closure unlikely — Gurufocus says 'less likely'
• Keller left the door open to strategic partnerships
• Qualcomm remains interested in the AI chip space despite this setback